A couple weeks ago Lacuna Coil played in Denver, CO as part of the Revolver - Hottest Chicks In Hard Rock Tour, but since they announced a gig mere 15 minutes from my house, I opted to skip the drive up to the Mile High city and catch them locally instead.

So yes, Lacuna Coil played at The Black Sheep in Colorado Springs - aka the stepchild for tours coming through Colorado. And it's not that we don't have great venues here, it's because of the close proximity to Denver, we usually get the B-Market runs or the smaller band tours. But it's always a treat to see a "bigger" band at a local club and not having to drive forever to get home, sure is a plus as well.

Nothing More, Eve To Adam and Kyng did a great job of bringing the audience into the right mood. They all were great, and while the first two bands are more of your garden variety, but awesome nevertheless, rock outfits, I somehow enjoyed Kyng the most. Anyway, the place was pretty packed and by the time Lacuna Coil took the stage it seemed even more people came out to party.

In hindsight, it would have been nice to see them in Denver because the venue had a photo pit, which The Black Sheep only has for special occasions or when a band requests them, but I managed to push my way toward the front to take a couple pictures - literally, push. *Rant Nr. 1*: I get it, you came early to see the band up close, and some chick with a camera wants to take your spot. But hey, I asked nicely, am here to do my job and am only in your way for a minute or so. Yes, I could come early also, stand for hours in the front just to take enough pics to cover the gig. Regardless, there is no need to be a douche and shove me or purposely have your hands in front of my lens or spill your drink on my gear; just saying. *Rant over*

Anyhoo, the last time I saw Lacuna Coil was early 2013 on the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise and since they still had two guitarist at that point, I was eager to check out their live sound with only one of their shredders. Pretty good I have to say, and during our interview earlier that day, Cristina told me that they don't plan on bringing another guitarist into the fold anytime soon. Then again, I don't know if they piped in the second guitar via the soundboard, but regardless, "Maus" did an outstanding job that night. The same goes for Ryan Folden, who actually drummed for Lacuna Coil on several occasions throughout the years.

It was nice seeing the band on a small stage, especially with all of the gear they brought with them. Holy hell, the light-rig they used in The Black Sheep was clearly geared toward bigger places. Not taking anything away from the local rig, but it is always nice when bands bring their own stuff and the light show that night was very good to say the least. And not just the lights, the sound was awesome as well.

Lacuna Coil were just days away from releasing their newest album Broken Crown Halo (read the review here) and unfortunately they only played two new songs, "Die & Rise" and "Nothing Stands In Our Way". Those two are also the singles the band released, so everyone in the audience already knew them and sang along nicely with Cristina and Andrea. Other than that, Lacuna Coil played mostly songs of their 2012 release Dark Adrenaline and they only reached back as far as 2002's Comalies with "Swamped" and "Heaven's A Lie" - at least that's what I recall.

Regardless, it was a great show. *Rant Nr. 2*: I get it, you want to take a picture and/or video of your favorite band with your smartphone. But holy crap, the amount of lit up screens during shows these days is getting to the point of being ridiculous. Are you really enjoying the gig while watching it on the screen of your phone? While I don't agree with Glenn Danzig and his absolutely NO cell phone policy during his shows (his reason for not allowing them is ego-driven), I wish that bands would ask their fans to put down the phones and enjoy the show. *Rant over*

Equally great was how the band did the Meet 'n Greet after their set. There was a sign at the front door stating to get your Lacuna Coil merch early, since the first 100 people (I think it was 100, might have been more) will get a pass to meet the band afterwards. Now THAT was a great idea! Instead of fattening the pockets of the booking agent with ridiculous VIP pass prices, the band took the direct approach and sold some swag at the same time. Kudos!

The fans had the opportunity to get their CD's, ticket stubs, pictures and whatever else they brought, signed by the band. Guitarist "Maus" told me that it took 45 minutes when they played in Albuquerque, NM the day prior, and while I don't know exactly how long the line was in Colorado Springs, it sure seemed close to 45 minutes as well. Again, great idea.

Lacuna Coil will be touring relentlessly for this album; make sure to catch them if they come to a city near you. For tour dates check the artist page or their official and social media sites.

Addressing points in order:
1. \m/
2. There's no point, everything is 30 minutes away from everything else! ...except, apparently, the time it takes you to get to the Black Sheep. I can only assume that you are a witch or that you have a portal device.